MCF Advisors LLC Purchases 223 Shares of Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST)

MCF Advisors LLC raised its position in Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) by 54.1% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 635 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 223 shares during the period. MCF Advisors LLC’s holdings in Fastenal were worth $45,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of FAST. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Fastenal by 497.3% in the first quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 3,099,333 shares of the company’s stock valued at $239,083,000 after buying an additional 2,580,478 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in Fastenal by 4,008.2% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 756,241 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,522,000 after acquiring an additional 737,833 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Fastenal by 19.9% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,837,530 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,161,000 after buying an additional 636,546 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC bought a new position in Fastenal in the second quarter valued at $37,659,000. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc increased its position in shares of Fastenal by 21.2% during the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 3,248,853 shares of the company’s stock worth $250,617,000 after purchasing an additional 569,118 shares during the last quarter. 81.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Fastenal Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FAST traded up $0.62 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $75.85. The company had a trading volume of 2,104,015 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,348,987. The firm has a market cap of $43.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.74, a PEG ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 1.01. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $70.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $68.04. Fastenal has a one year low of $57.01 and a one year high of $79.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 2.29 and a current ratio of 4.39.

Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST) last released its earnings results on Friday, October 11th. The company reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.01. Fastenal had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 33.54%. The firm had revenue of $1.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.90 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Fastenal will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Fastenal Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 25th. Fastenal’s payout ratio is presently 77.61%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider William Joseph Drazkowski sold 16,362 shares of Fastenal stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.65, for a total value of $1,270,509.30. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 5,997 shares in the company, valued at approximately $465,667.05. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CAO Sheryl Ann Lisowski sold 13,567 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.19, for a total value of $1,033,669.73. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,096 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $388,264.24. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider William Joseph Drazkowski sold 16,362 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.65, for a total transaction of $1,270,509.30. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,997 shares in the company, valued at approximately $465,667.05. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 179,373 shares of company stock worth $13,029,308 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on FAST. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Fastenal from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Stephens lifted their price target on Fastenal from $56.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Fastenal from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Bank of America initiated coverage on Fastenal in a report on Monday, October 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $85.00 target price for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Fastenal from $67.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Fastenal has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $73.33.

Fastenal Company Profile

Fastenal Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the wholesale distribution of industrial and construction supplies in the United States, Canada, Mexico, North America, and internationally. It offers fasteners, and related industrial and construction supplies under the Fastenal name. The company’s fastener products include threaded fasteners, bolts, nuts, screws, studs, and related washers that are used in manufactured products and construction projects, as well as in the maintenance and repair of machines.